Chapter Text
It all started in the tunnels. Or maybe before that. But Mike started to notice in the tunnels.
Will and Robin were close. Really, really close.
They’d never been close before. Right? Will barely knew her. But now they’re hanging behind the group. Laughing together. Robin whispers jokes in his ear. And Will keeps smiling at her.
Is Mike this out of the loop? They live in the same house. Did he not notice Will suddenly becoming close with Robin Buckley?
Of course, really, it’s the least of his problems. Insignificant, in the big picture. The apocalypse is still happening. And Will has found a way to harness Vecna’s abilities. Which, by the way, Mike thought might be possible. Not Robin. So why is Will spending so much time with Robin?
Mike is not jealous. But he doesn’t have to like it. What, is Will going to start hanging out with Steve and Robin? Then Dustin will join in, and Lucas, and all of them will swarm him and Mike will never see him again.
It’s not that they aren’t all friends. Of course Will is allowed to have new friends. But they’re friendship is different. Right? Mike always figured. He doesn’t have a word for it, or anything. But why does everything need words anyway?
The point is that Mike is not at all upset about how they’re suddenly best friends. He is supposed to be Will’s best friend.
It doesn’t matter. Mike is cool about it. He and Will are still close. And Will has powers now! Mike can’t stop thinking about it. He keeps picturing him. Controlling everything. It was… beautiful. Will was beautiful.
Which, of course, is a completely normal thought to have. Mike is feeling very normal about everything right now.
It’s okay. He has a whole plan for his life, why is he worrying about Robin Buckley?
Three waterfalls. Go away with El. This is what he wants. He thinks. He’s pretty sure.
It’s not much of a plan.
But it’s the logical conclusion, isn’t it? That’s how campaigns end. That’s how this ends. He gets Holly back, and he and El go away to live happily ever after. Three waterfalls and Mike and his girlfriend.
And Will and Robin become best friends. Where does Will go in this plan?
Obviously, he’d live with them. Mike’s not losing Will again, he couldn’t handle that. So, three waterfalls, Mike, his girlfriend, and Will. A very normal conversation.
Mike is focusing too much on Will. He should be worrying about El. He pictures El. That’s what boyfriends do. They think about their girlfriends. El laughing. El fighting. El getting a nosebleed after stopping a monster.
Will getting a nosebleed after fighting a monster.
El at the roller rink.
Will at the roller rink. You’ve called maybe twice.
The sound of Joyce’s voice telling him the phone line was busy. Why didn’t Mike just say that? Why didn’t he…
This is the wrong train of thought. Think about El. He runs up to El in the field. She hugs him. It’s good to be held. El smiles sadly. El laughs and shoves him playfully away. Mike beams at her, following her into the tunnel.
What?
No. That was Will. Will who is now best friends with Robin, or something.
What has gotten into Mike today? He’s being weird. Why do things have to be weird?
Will is allowed to have other friends. Mike was fine when Dustin became friends with Steve. But this feels different somehow. It’s Will. Will is different.
This room is too loud. Everyone is asleep but you.
Mike doesn’t know what to do, so he sits up. They’ve all camped out at the radio station. He looks next to him, at Will’s sleeping form, and his stomach flutters. He looks over at El. The feeling goes away.
“How did you know that Max was the one for you?”
“I don’t know,” Lucas replied. “There was just a feeling in my stomach. Butterflies. But different.”
A jolt of panic rushes through Mike. For a minute, he irrationally wonders where his father is. If it were up to me, you wouldn’t even be on the team.
The hospital. Because there are a million problems bigger than this one. What am I even doing? Guilt pulses through Mike. How can he be thinking thoughts like this? His parents nearly died. Holly is missing.
Mike looks at El. The rise and fall of her chest. He’s glad she’s okay. He was worried. And he’s happy that she’s going to find Holly. And I knew, right there, that I loved you. Just like she found Will.
He stares at her. He searches for love.
It was the best thing I’ve ever done, his mind whispers.
He closes his eyes. El is gasping for air and Will wants Mike to do something about it. So he did.
El is asking him if they can live happily ever after. What’s stopping us? It was a genuine question.
Clearly something is. As if on cue, Will shifts in his sleep behind him.
Mike is suddenly too aware of everything. Quietly, he stands up. The floor is cold against his feet. He steps over Robin and opens the door quietly. He shuts it behind him.
He’s not stupid enough to go outside. He just needs distance. Quiet as he can be, he walks up the stairs and leans against the round, stone windowsill. The stars are twinkling above them as if nothing is going wrong. As if his parents didn’t nearly die. As if his sister isn’t missing. As if he isn’t wrong. The stars don’t know things like that.
This world does.
Mike thinks about his empty sleeping bag between Will and El. He’s poison to both of them. They’re both realizing. Or, they will soon. They’ll move on and leave him in the dust.
Mike thinks about those kids. He couldn’t get them all out. He couldn’t even save himself. Will saved me. And then he’s thinking about Will, and how Mike’s heart did a somersault when he crushed those demogorgons. What a reaction. Asshole.
He realizes that there are tears on his cheeks. What are you becoming, Mike?
“Hey.”
He turns around, wiping them away quickly with his sweater sleeve. It’s Robin.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“What?” he asks, and he sounds bitter. She was laughing with Will. She’s allowed to do that. Will laughed with him, too. And Mike had too many feelings about it. That’s always the problem with you.
Robin walks up to him. “Couldn’t sleep?”
“Sorry if I woke you,” Mike murmurs.
Robin shrugs. “I wasn’t sleeping well either. Too much to handle.” She looks at him for a moment, and then turns to face out towards the sky.
Mike swallows, and then he does the same. Orion’s belt twinkles up there. Mike remembers showing Will where that was. They laughed then.
“What was the joke?” he asks, before he can stop himself.
“Hm?” Robin asks.
“The joke. You told Will a joke or something. When you fell behind in the tunnel.”
Robin looks over at him. Mike feels her gaze, but he’s too embarrassed to look back at her.
“Well?” Mike asked, after a moment.
“Why are you asking me that?” Robin asks him.
Mike buries his face in his hands. “I don’t know. I just… he doesn’t laugh like that a lot. I… nevermind. It’s stupid.” He looks through his fingers over at her. Her gaze is hard to read.
“I doubt it is. Why?”
Mike shakes his head. “I don’t know. I just noticed.”
“You notice a lot of things about Will?”
“Yeah?” Mike shrugs. “I always do that. I mean, he’s my best friend. Of course I notice things.”
“What about Dustin? I don’t remember you interrogating Steve.”
Mike looks over at her. “I don’t know! I just noticed.”
Robin holds her hands up. “Sorry. I just ask questions.”
Mike shrugs. “It’s fine.” There is a stretch of silence. He can feel her watching at him. “I just notice things about Will. I always do. He’s… it’s different, with him.”
“Different how?” Robin’s voice is gentle. Curious. Mike doesn’t know what it is about her. He’s saying things he wouldn’t normally say.
“I don’t know.” He turns around and sits on the ground, resting his head against the wall. He pulls his knees into his chestsRobin joins him. She sits crosslegged and moves closer, bumping her knee against his calf.
“How did you guys meet?”
Mike chuckles. “It was kindergarten. The first day. I was terrified, y’know? And, I don’t know. I saw Will on the swings. I just walked up to him and asked. I…” he wipes his eyes. “Sorry. I just- the last time I told this story was when he was possessed. It was… anyway. Becoming friends with Will was the best thing I ever did. I just… I feel like I’m messing it up. I was just asking how you’re doing such a good job.”
“You were there,” Robin says. To herself almost.
“What?”
“Steve told me about how only three people went to break Will out of possession. I didn’t realize you were one of them.”
“Yeah.” Mike isn’t sure what is significant about that. “I was.”
“So. Will has abilities now, huh?”
“Yeah. I always knew he could do something about it.”
“I can’t believe I wasn’t there. What did he look like?”
“He was… it was amazing. His hair was still wet from when the pipe leaked at Dick. So it was curling a little bit. And he was so confident. He really was like Will the Wise. And he was…” Mike hesitates. “It was cool.”
Robin nods. “What about El? What are her powers like?”
“She holds her hand out in front of her, and really cool stuff happened. Then she gets a nosebleed. It’s how we saved Will. She’s basically a superhero. Why?”
“No reason.”
“I guess that El and Will both have powers now. That’s weird.” Mike shrugs. There is a long stretch of silence, but Robin isn’t leaving.
“You’re dating El, right?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“How is that?” she asks.
Mike shrugs. “It’s good. It’s okay. I mean, it’s pressure, right? It’s what everyone expects from me. You know? Sometimes I wonder if I’m only dating her because everybody told me to.”
He stops. Did I just say that? His heart stops. “I mean, uh, no. I’m dating her because I… care for her. Y’know? It’s totally… natural and stuff.”
“Does it feel natural?”
“Yes! Uh… I mean… I think?”
Robin takes a deep breath next to him. “If you aren’t sure, then maybe you shouldn’t be stringing her along. Yeah?”
Mike rests his chin on his knees. “But what am I supposed to do then?”
“What do you mean?”
“How am I supposed to be normal?”
“Oh, Mike. Being normal is so overrated.”
He shrugs. “I don’t… I don’t know.”
“Well, you don’t have to know. Take your time, right?”
“But I feel like I’m supposed to know.” The words are just spilling out of him now. Since when does he open up to Robin Buckley?
Well, nobody has asked him about this. She’s the first one not to assume.
“Have you ever been in love?” Mike asks.
Robin nods, just slightly. “Once. With…”
“With who?”
Robin looks over at him. “I don’t know if you’d understand.” Her gaze isn’t angry or sad. Her tone is just honest.
Mike nods. “That’s okay. Are you going to leave now?” It sounds more desperate than he meant it to, but Robin doesn’t comment. She just nudges him gently. His head falls onto her shoulder.
“You should talk to Nancy.”
“Nancy is going through a lot.”
“That doesn’t mean she doesn’t have time for you.”
Mike stares at the wall on the opposite side of the radio station. Time passes.
“Vicky Dunne,” Robin whispers. “I’m in love with Vicky Dunne.”
Mike doesn’t move. “What are you going to do about it?” he asks sadly.
“Nothing. She’s in love with me, too.” Robin stands up, and offers him a hand. “Come on, Wheeler. You need sleep.”
Mike accepts her hand, and stumbles when he stands up. She catches him with a small chuckle.
They walk silently back into the room. Mike stares at the ceiling, afraid to look at Will or El. Scared of what he’ll feel inside. What is happening to me?
He has a feeling it happened a long time ago. And he’s not sure that Robin and Will being friends has anything to do with it.
Shit.